Last week the Indiana Court of Appeals issued this decision. A little background. Once upon a time, in early 2005, there was a plot of “land at the southwest corner of the intersection of highways I-65 and State Road 250 in an unincorporated area [that] was developed — with a building, driveway, and signage for [...]

That’s what they say about parenthood — Happy Father’s Day. Here’ an unpublished opinion issued last Friday by the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals. A little background: In 1994, El Paso Entertainment (a strip club) sued the City of El Paso, challenging the validity of its zoning ordinances regulating Sexually Oriented Businesses. Before that issue could be resolved, the City and [...]

Paul Braley (“Braley”) has a leasehold interest in property in Forest Park, Georgia, where he operates a retail salvage store. Since 1984, he has displayed merchandise for sale to the public in front of the store in an area where there is a sidewalk and places to park. In March 2007, the City of Forest [...]

This tale sounds familiar. It’s about the Singhs, who operate a retail martket in south Stockton, California. The Singh’s “market has been selling alcohol for about 60 years as a legal nonconforming use. Located in a high crime area, its parking lot has been a center of criminal activity, from loitering, public drunkenness, gambling and narcotics activity to assaults, [...]

A little over a week ago, the Michigan Court of Appeals issued this (majority) opinion. A divided court (2-1) affirmed that Erie Township did not violate the rights of Alcatraz Industries, Inc. by adopting an ordinance restricting adult entertainment establishments to C-2 zoning districts. Among other restrictions, the ordinance requires an adult business to obtain a [...]

“A Maryland law that sought to block strip clubs in Prince George’s County from selling alcohol carved out an unconstitutional exception for a club that was owned by a former state senator, a federal judge held this week,” reports The Washington Post here. Read the decision.

From the Seventh Court of Appeals of Texas comes this case. It concerns Kenneth Smartt, who began operating a business involving nude dancers (Xoticas) outside the city limits of Laredo in 1995. In 1998, Laredo annexed the property. Four years later, Laredo amended a previously existing ordinance to require those operating sexually oriented businesses to [...]

Two federal, appellate opinions concerning adult entertainment were issued this week. From the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals, there is Forty One News, Inc. v. County of Lake. Long story short: 41 News, an adult book and video store, sued the county under 42 U.S.C. Sec. 1983, challenging the county’s adult use ordinance on federal [...]

“Memphis lawmakers said Friday they want to fix a loophole in the law that let a strip club open, even though city and county attorneys tried to prevent it,” reports WMCTV.com. Read more about it here.